11 Oct 2023

Mapoka Home Defenders Sporting Club is set to host its inaugural music festival at Corner Gardens on Saturday to raise funds for charity in the vilage.

The social club’s intention is to raise funds to enable them carry out some works and not solely rely on donations, which have become limited. The event would be held annually.

In an interview in Gaborone on Monday, Mapoka Home Defenders Sporting Club General Manager Wazha Monyatsi, alias Zoom said that the club dates back to 1974 where folks used to meet up after school to play soccer and as a result the club was borne.

The club is not your average Sunday soccer outfit but it goes beyond the passion for the game, and had become a beacon of hope, giving back to the community that supports them despite meeting occasionally during holidays, hence the idea of extending their mandate to encompass other arms such as charity.  

“The primary objective of the festival is to generate funds that will be used to support various charities, including food hampers, clothing, toiletry to the less privileged through social workers. We want to make a notable mark, indicating that we exist for a purpose,” he said.

Monyatsi said the club has been allocated a plot and planned to have a sporting arena where all their activities would take place without having to pay for venues for their events.

He said having their own arena would create employment opportunities for the youths in their village as they would be engaged to manage the place as well as bringing significant improvements in their society as it would attract patrons.

He said Mapoka Home Defenders Sporting Club housed professional and semi professional players, and said their plan was for semi-professionals to be identified and absorbed by elite teams, as such would reduce the numbers of unemployed youths.

Monyatsi said the festival will be a vibrant and diverse celebration of music, with line-up headlined by South African Johnny Mokhali of “Sophie o Manoni Wa Me” fame.

The local Afro Jazz artiste popular for his song Ke a gana Thabang Gaarogwe, while Dj Shaboo and Dj Sean Lacoostaq will be on the turntables, and Oa-Tshela-Le Cultural troupe among the others will spice the day with their Hosanna dance and possibly make some patrons miss home.

The show will kick off at 1400 till 0600 hours.Monyatsi  said they will have a tight security to ensure that patrons and their belongings were safe.

He said through their club wants to foster relations with all hence the football is open to all even those who are not from Mapoka.

 “The Club brings together the community through charity matches, fundraising tournaments as well as receive hampers from other people in the society which proves and promotes team work,” he added.

The formation of the club has given births to a number of football clubs in the village. ENDS